Today.Az » Society » Iranian newspaper closed over Azeri cartoon
23 May 2006 [15:31] - Today.Az
Iran's state radio reports the government today ordered the indefinite closure of one of its newspapers for publishing a cartoon that prompted riots in the country's northwest.
The Tehran-based "Iran" newspaper on May 19 published a cartoon showing a cockroach speaking Azeri, the language of the predominant ethnic group in the northwest, RFE/RL informs. Hundreds of demonstrators took to the streets of Tabriz, the region's main city, to protest the publication. Radio Farda reports that clashes on May 22 between protesters and police left at least one demonstrator wounded. A number of cabinet ministers have apologized for the cartoon. Azeris make up an estimated one-fourth of Iran's population. They are concentrated mainly in the northwest of the country, south of the border with Azerbaijan.
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